


Restoration of Hope

by starkerscoop



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Fake Dating, Getting Together, Jealous Tony Stark, M/M, Misunderstandings, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Pre-Slash, Sort of anyway, he's kind of just sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-07 05:28:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26467966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkerscoop/pseuds/starkerscoop
Summary: Tony’s heart sank. He had no claim on Peter; they weren’t dating, weren’t anything beyond close friends and coworkers. Peter could flirt with anyone he wanted to flirt with. Just because he himself was falling deeper into a pit of unrequited love didn’t mean Peter had to be mindful of him. The fleeting touches in Tony’s lab, the midnight heart-to-hearts, the burnt meals -- they must not have meant as much to Peter as they did to Tony.Peter was free to take home anyone he wanted.
Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark
Comments: 6
Kudos: 187





	Restoration of Hope

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Peter getting creeped on at Tony’s party by whoever and is too nervous to tell Tony bc he doesn’t wanna be a bother but Tony can tell these things, cut to Tony pulling Peter in closely as the man is in eyesight and kissing him softly bc he’s a dumbass who did the first thing he thought off. The man backs off quickly but that is DEFINITELY not the end of that

Tony didn’t think his searching gaze was subtle, but it didn’t matter. The reason he’d agreed to attend the gala in the first place was because Peter had promised to accompany him, and Tony was willing to do just about anything to spend time with him. The only issue was, Tony had been swept away by a hoard of well-dressed men and women as soon as he’d stepped into the building. He’d immediately lost sight of Peter, and nearly an hour later, he was feeling guilty and trying to find him. 

It hadn’t been his intention to leave Peter to the wolves, but it had happened, and he was going to have to make up for it somehow. Tony ambled over to the bar as he continued to scan the room. It was after he had two drinks in hand -- one for him, and one for Peter -- that he spotted the man he was looking for. 

Peter was standing near the corner of the room, almost directly across from the bar. He was talking to a blond man that towered over him, the latter of whom was gesturing to the couples dancing in the middle of the room. 

Tony’s heart sank. He had no claim on Peter; they weren’t dating, weren’t anything beyond close friends and coworkers. Peter could flirt with anyone he wanted to flirt with. Just because he himself was falling deeper into a pit of unrequited love didn’t mean Peter had to be mindful of him. The fleeting touches in Tony’s lab, the midnight heart-to-hearts, the burnt meals -- they must not have meant as much to Peter as they did to Tony. 

Peter was free to take home anyone he wanted. 

Tony was about to turn away from the couple, nausea churning in his stomach at the thought, when the blond turned and revealed Peter’s face. Peter’s eyes were darting away from the blond, mouth fixed in a completely fake smile that told Tony he was trying to be polite. 

Relief bloomed in Tony’s chest, and he set off towards the pair after leaving the drinks at the bar, heart singing with the knowledge that Peter wasn’t trying to get with the blond. The fact that he could still go home with someone else at the gala niggled at the back of his mind, and Tony had to suppress a sigh as he neared the corner. He was going to have to make his move soon. 

When Peter noticed him coming up, his strained smile visibly relaxed as he stepped aside to make room for Tony. 

“You gentlemen having a good evening?” Tony drawled, stopping next to Peter and piercing the blond with an unimpressed stare. 

“It just got better,” Peter said, bolder now that he had Tony to support him. 

Tony smiled, flattered, “I’m glad. You up for some dancing, Pete?” 

“Actually,” the blond cut in, narrowing his eyes, “He was about to join me on the dancefloor.” 

“And who are you?” Tony raised his eyebrows. 

“A friend,” the blond said simply, “My name is Maxwell Davidson.” 

“Okay, Maxwell Davidson,” Tony nodded, “Unfortunately for you, I’m his boyfriend, which means I’ll come first every single time. Maybe we’ll pencil you in for that dance a year from now. Or never. Never sounds good to me.” 

Tony cupped Peter’s chin with both hands, ignoring his shocked expression and hoping beyond hope that he’d go along with the ruse, and bent his head until his mouth was pushing against Peter’s in a gentle kiss. After a moment or two, Peter shook himself out of his surprise and started kissing him back. 

They pulled away after a solid two minutes of languidly making out, their kisses growing more heated than what would be appropriate in a public setting. They stood there with their foreheads pressed against the other’s, panting quietly until they remembered their audience. 

When they turned to face Maxwell, they saw that he was gone, the space in front of them empty. 

“Since when are you my boyfriend?” Peter asked, half-teasing and half-genuine. 

Tony coughed and looked away, stubbornly refusing to feel embarrassed. If this was the only time he would get to kiss Peter, he wasn’t going to let himself regret it. 

“It got him off your back, didn’t it?” Tony shrugged, dodging the question uneasily. 

“Yeah,” Peter looked down at his shoes stiffly, “I guess it did.” 

“Do you want to go home? I had FRIDAY order some popcorn the other day, we could watch some movies,” Tony suggested, trying desperately to get rid of the awkward tension building between them. 

“That’d be great, actually,” Peter smiled, following him out of the building and into the night. 

The drive to Tony’s penthouse was quiet. Peter leaned his head against the cold window, watching the streets blur by with half-lidded eyes. Tony hummed along to the radio, fingers dancing on the wheel as he drove. Occasionally he would glance at Peter, checking on him even though it wasn’t needed. His lips were still tingling with the memory of Peter’s own brushing against them, tongue peeking out sometimes to swipe at them. 

He wondered if Peter was thinking about it, too. Whether his thoughts were tinged with disgust or reverence. 

They went up to the penthouse and collapsed onto one of Tony’s numerous couches, not bothering to change their clothes beyond taking off their jackets and ties. FRIDAY switched on the TV and put on a random movie, letting it play once he and Peter were fully comfortable in their spots. 

This was their thing. Tony and Peter often disagreed over which movie they should watch, Tony usually going for the classics while Peter wanted to watch something recent. They solved the issue by having FRIDAY choose what they watched, and despite the crappy movies they ended up watching sometimes, Tony was happy about the difference in preferences. It gave him and Peter something that they didn’t share with anyone else. And maybe that made Tony feel special, but he would never admit it to anyone. 

They were halfway through their movie when Peter turned to him, his thigh brushing against Tony’s and catching his attention, “Why’d you really pretend to be my boyfriend?” 

Tony stilled, ice cold fear washing over him. He stayed silent, racking his brain for an answer Peter would accept, but nothing was coming to mind. Peter nudged him lightly, and the words spilled out without Tony’s permission. 

“I wanted to kiss you.” 

Peter’s eyes widened, but he wasn’t moving away, or running out of the room screaming in revulsion, “Why?” 

“I like you,” Tony admitted in a hushed voice, avoiding his gaze, “Might even love you.” 

Peter choked, and said in a strangled voice, “Oh.” 

Tony swallowed harshly, taking the silence as a rejection and sliding away from him, “Sorry. I know I shouldn’t have said anything.” 

Peter grabbed his arm and pulled him back to him, shifting his body to curl around him in a tight hug, “I’m glad you said it. I don’t think I would’ve ever made the first move.” 

“Does that mean you--?” Tony asked hopefully, his question cut off when Peter grabbed his face and pulled it down, their mouths colliding in a passionate kiss. 

“Does that answer your question?” Peter wondered breathily. 

Tony yanked him into another kiss, “You might need to repeat your answer a few more times.”


End file.
